In the WTF category

[F1nut]

(Aug. 7) -- An 8-year-old was turning lemons into lemonade in hopes earning money for a family vacation -- until authorities shut down her juice stand.
Officials in Tulare, Calif., said Daniela Earnest was operating her stand on one of the most dangerous intersections in the city and she was running it without a permit. City code enforcement officer Richard Garcia shut it down on Monday, according to the Fresno Bee.

Daniela, who was trying to earn money for a family trip to Disneyland, went with her father to appeal the decision in front of the city council on Tuesday.
Council members promised they would find a way to help Daniela keep selling lemonade, according to local ABC-affiliate KFSN-TV. This will likely mean a compromise, such as a nominal fee from lemonade stand operators or a fee waiver for young children, Vice Mayor Philip Vandegrift told the Fresno Bee.
While that compromise is still in the works, Daniela's story ended happily. A local radio station heard her story and gave the Earnest family four free tickets to Disneyland -- in exchange for 30 cups of Daniela's lemonade.
"I feel pretty happy," Daniela told the Fresno Bee. "You feel like you've accomplished something with the lemonade stand and then we get to go to someplace that's real fun."

Sad, very sad what America has become.

[nooshinjohn]

couldn't agree more Jesse... Seems like there is a story about this every year now. I wonder when the Girl Scouts will need to get permits to sell door to door.

[Disc Jockey]

I don't know. I guess I see this one a little differently. I see this as the father trying to help his daughter make money faster and ignoring common sense as to where to open the stand. I can't imagine anyone opening a lemonade stand at one of the busiest and most dangerous intersections around here and adding to the chaos that already exists. The enforcement officer probably used the only tool available to him to make them stop. If she hadn't been at that intersection I'm sure the whole permit thing would have been a non-issue.

On the plus side, the council members were going to find a way around the ruling (hopefully at a safer location) and the radio station stepped up to make the trip happen. Happy ending.

[fossy]

On the plus side, the council members were going to find a way around the ruling (hopefully at a safer location) and the radio station stepped up to make the trip happen. Happy ending.

+1 great happy ending..

[bobman1235]

Sad what the American GOVERNMENT has become. It seems to me that America is good and strong - the American people (at least, a radio station) heard this story of oppression and helped the girl out.

That's the America I choose to look at...

[F1nut]

I see this as the father trying to help his daughter make money faster and ignoring common sense as to where to open the stand. I can't imagine anyone opening a lemonade stand at one of the busiest and most dangerous intersections around here and adding to the chaos that already exists.

Common sense and the basic principal of any business dictates that the busiest location will generate the most business, which in turn will generate the greatest profit. The only party not exercising common sense is the gov't, as usual.

[obieone]

Makes sense to me. How else are they going to continue to provide clean needles to junkies in Haight Ashbury?

[Keiko]

The point Jesse is making is sad. But I'm glad things worked out and the Radio Station stepped up to the plate to help. Bitter sweet lemonade.

For some reason, these lyrics come to mind:

"I just flipped off President George. I'm going to Dizz Knee Land."

Have a good time Daniela.

[George Grand]

You do that at one of the busiest intersections anywhere around Jersey, and you're going to have people plowing into each other left and right. Eventually, probably run over the kids and the stand.

Maybe there was a safety aspect involved?


Great work by the radio station, but I'd like The Big Picture first.

[DarqueKnight]

From the Fresno Bee newspaper:

"Richard Garcia, a Tulare code enforcement officer, happened to be at the same intersection to remove illegal signs left behind by someone selling tetherball poles.

Garcia told Daniela and her stepmother that their lemonade stand -- on the northwest corner of the busy intersection -- was not safe, and also that they needed a business license to sell lemonade.

He helped the pair load their ice chest and equipment into their car and then called city planners to find out where they could relocate.

"He wasn't out there on lemonade patrol," said Frank Furtaw, Tulare's code enforcement manager. Garcia was merely applying the city's code enforcement laws equitably, Furtaw said.

Tulare officials said they cannot recall ever shutting down a lemonade stand before this week. But it's not altogether uncommon. Authorities across the nation have done the same. And in Fresno, a Huntington Boulevard shaved ice machine run by a resident mostly so neighborhood kids could get a sno-cone on hot days was shut down by a Fresno code enforcer in June 2008.

Ed Earnest, Daniela's father, said Garcia got "a bad rap" from critics about his enforcement actions. "He was just doing his job," Earnest said."

I agree with the girl's father. I can imagine the outcry and lawsuits that would have resulted if this child had gotten injured or killed by a vehicle veering off the street. Then all the talk would have been that the city was negligent because they allowed an 8 year old child to set up shop at a dangerous intersection. I also don't think it was a good idea to impede traffic by inducing motorists to stop for a lemonade. People have enough distractions with their cell phones and texting.

[NJPOLKER]

Again its government tell people how to raise their children and on and on and on and on.
How dumb are people/parents these days? Generally speaking no one talks about parenting but how government should "rule" how children are raised. How sad is that?

[danger boy]

shut that kid down.. she was a major law breaker... you give her permission to sell lemonade as she pleases whenever and where ever she wants.. pretty soon you know it... she may move to something stronger.. like iced tea with lemon for pete's sake.


sad, and doesn't that city have better things to do with their time? Seriously now.

[george daniel]

number nine,number nine, number nine.

[lightman1]

number nine,number nine, number nine.

How many people understand that? Good stuff George.;)

[tonyb]

It is sad....very sad.

I remember a very hot day one summer.Working on a residential street,myself,a couple other guys,no water,we would find a hose somewhere and drench ourselves,then go back to work.On the corner was a couple young kids with a lemonaide stand,25 cents for a cup,10 cents for a cookie.Damn,we were going back and forth for the better part of an hour.I finally said to the kids,who didn't look very happy,"Wouldn't you rather be playing than sitting here in the hot sun?" Of coarse they looked at each other,"well,yeah",they said,but mom was making them raise money to help with a family trip comming up.A teachable momment no doubt.I flipped the kids a $20,told them to keep the pitcher full,and cookies too,told them to go play.Yeah,I cleared it with mom first.The look on those little faces was priceless though.A win-win deal.But the american lemonaid stand is a cultural classic to me.The attack on our culture seems to have no bounds as of late.

[zarrdoss]

I saw a story about this on the news and the anchor-man woman had this ridiculous fake smile on their faces while telling the story. And I thought how can you sit there telling a story of how a little girl selling lemonade got shut down by the police with that huge fake smile on your face?

[cfrizz]

Precisely George. You all would be singing a different tune if we read how this girl got hit & dragged to her death instead.

Maybe the father should get a 2nd job to afford these tickets to DW but to knowingly allow his daughter to risk getting run down for more money is just plain STUPID.

Setting up shop in a residential neighborhood is one thing. Setting it up in a busy intersection is just a lack of common sense. I wonder if there are any statistics on how many accidents happen in the intersection the girl was at.

You do that at one of the busiest intersections anywhere around Jersey, and you're going to have people plowing into each other left and right. Eventually, probably run over the kids and the stand.

Maybe there was a safety aspect involved?


Great work by the radio station, but I'd like The Big Picture first.

[DarqueKnight]

Sad, very sad what America has become.

Why is a police officer's enforcement of a reasonable city ordinance indicative of national decline?

[bobman1235]

Moving the kids for safety - a reasonable city ordinance.

Requiring children to obtain a permit to sell lemonade? Indicitive of the decline of common sense.

[CaligulaPolk]

YEA WHAT THE FU$K!?!?

If it was police officer's daughter, no cops would shut them down...
probably buying lemonade after eating donuts

[F1nut]

I wouldn't call requiring an 8 year old to have a business license for the purpose of selling lemonade at a temporary stand even close to reasonable, regardless of it's location. Simply another example of an out of control big bother government deciding what is best for the people.

Tony summed it up well, "But the american lemonaid stand is a cultural classic to me. The attack on our culture seems to have no bounds as of late."

Based on the logic used by some, the city should ban folks from walking down the sidewalk or crossing the street as well as they are certainly a distraction to those driving. I mean, it would be for your safety, right!?!

[DarqueKnight]

I just don't see this as the big bad officer picking on some poor little kid and neither does her father.

Most cities have some type of laws regulating street vendors. The age of the vendor is irrelevant. If the officer had observed an adult doing the same thing in the same location, he would have done the same thing.

If you want to sell on the street I think you should follow the law. There are public safety, and, in the case of food and beverage vendors, public health concerns. The child and her stepmother could have gotten injured. Accidents could have been caused. People could have gotten sick from contaminants in the lemonade. If this kid was allowed to do this on a busy intersection, what is to stop ten other people from setting up shop at the same intersection and selling everything from tee shirts to crack cocaine?

If this had been a kid on a quiet residential street selling lemonade to her neighbors, I doubt the officer would have said anything and indeed, a lot of cities have waivers/exemptions for these types of things (kids mowing lawns, garage sales, Girl Scout cookie sales, etc.)

If you want to live in an orderly and secure society, you can't be free to do whatever you want whenever you want. I willingly gave up the right to plant whatever type of grass, trees, and shrubs I want in my yard when I chose to build a home in a particular subdivision.

[DarqueKnight]

Based on the logic used by some, the city should ban folks from walking down the sidewalk or crossing the street as well as they are certainly a distraction to those driving. I mean, it would be for your safety, right!?!

As a motorist, I should be aware of my surroundings, including other motorists and pedestrians on the side of and crossing the street. However, pedestrians generally don't provide inducements and enticements for motorists to slow down and stop in order to engage in commerce.

There are laws in most cities regarding the crossing of streets at appropriate times and occasionally someone will get cited for jaywalking. There are also instances of pedestrians getting hit by cars when they became impatient, ignored the "Don't Walk" sign and took a chance on getting across a busy intersection before an approching vehicle could get to them.

[DarqueKnight]

Moving the kids for safety - a reasonable city ordinance.

Requiring children to obtain a permit to sell lemonade? Indicitive of the decline of common sense.

I think the stepmother's decision to allow a child to vend from the side of a busy and dangerous intersection was more indicative of a lack of judgment and common sense.

Every city I've ever lived allowed people to set up garage sales, at their own homes, with no permit whatsoever, provided the location was one that was not likely to impede traffic or cause other safety concerns.

If the same homeowner wanted to move their garage sale to a downtown sidewalk or a busy four-lane or six-lane intersection, then they would have needed a permit or, depending on where they wanted to set up shop, they might have been outright denied.

[PSOVLSK]

I can imagine the outcry and lawsuits that would have resulted if this child had gotten injured or killed by a vehicle veering off the street. Then all the talk would have been that the city was negligent because they allowed an 8 year old child to set up shop at a dangerous intersection.

And the very family who set up the lemonade stand would probably have a case against the city. That's the really sad part.

[DarqueKnight]

If I buy a hot dog or lemonade from one of the neighborhood kids and get sick from it, at least I know the source of the contaminated food and beverage and can take some corrective action. Furthermore, the population affected by the contamination is small and contained.

Now, If I buy contaminated food or beverage from an unlicensed street vendor who bounces around the city, the population affected by the contamination is substantially larger and the source of the contamination is substantially more difficult to track down.

[dragon1952]

Opening a lemonade stand in front of your house is one thing. Traveling to the busiest intersection in town lacks some common sense. Where do you draw the line? What if it was an adult with a hot dog stand? You need to get permission at least, and yes, possibly a license or permit.

[bobman1235]

If I buy a hot dog or lemonade from one of the neighborhood kids and get sick from it, at least I know the source of the contaminated food and beverage and can take some corrective action. Furthermore, the population affected by the contamination is small and contained.

Now, If I buy contaminated food or beverage from an unlicensed street vendor who bounces around the city, the population affected by the contamination is substantially larger and the source of the contamination is substantially more difficult to track down.

Dude, it's a little kid selling Country Time. Get a grip. It's paranoid loonies like you that are the reason for this nonsense. You're not going to get poisoned by some 10-year olds selling lemonade.

They're not "unlicensed street vendors". They're children doing what children have done for a century without involvement of the law. SO yes the age obviously matters.

If this kid was allowed to do this on a busy intersection, what is to stop ten other people from setting up shop at the same intersection and selling everything from tee shirts to crack cocaine?

COmmon sense? The fact that yo u're comparing a junky selling crack to a kid selling dollar lemonade is more proof your'e completely out of touch with what is going on.

If you want to live in an orderly and secure society, you can't be free to do whatever you want whenever you want.

Again, kiddies selling lemonade != anarchy and blood raining down in the streets. Yes there should be "laws" against unlicensed vendors. And then there should be human beings enforcing those laws who have the presence of mind, unlike someone like you, to tell the difference between crack and lemonade. These officers should have said "kids, go do this at home on your "quiet residential street", not here." End of story. Instead they brought the issue to committee, and the committee said "no dice, not without a license."

There are laws in most cities regarding the crossing of streets at appropriate times and occasionally someone will get cited for jaywalking. There are also instances of pedestrians getting hit by cars when they became impatient, ignored the "Don't Walk" sign and took a chance on getting across a busy intersection before an approching vehicle could get to them.

FOr the record, I disagree vehemently with those idiotic laws as well, but they're completely besides the point. If a cop ever tried to cite me for something as stupid as jaywalking (provided I didn't cause a car to skid to a stop or crash into a telephone pole to avoid me), I promise you I would get arrested for tearing the ticket up and throwing it in his face.

[Ricardo]

A few more bobmans and it will be total anarchy.....

[George Grand]

You do that in downtown Waikiki, and you're going to lose at least 24 hours of exciting vacation time. They don't play games with jaywalkers, and they love to make an example, of someone who is trying to set an example. Just saying.